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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28863021">TSSM Day 2</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaybeDefinitely404/pseuds/MaybeDefinitely404'>MaybeDefinitely404</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Soulmate September [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sanders Sides (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M, bad home life mentions, child neglect mentions, liquor store mention, past parental death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 05:42:27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,698</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28863021</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaybeDefinitely404/pseuds/MaybeDefinitely404</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>There is a timer that counts down to when you will meet your soulmate.</p><p>After discovering a surprisingly familiar secret about Roman, Janus begins to actually put in effort to be his friend.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Deceit | Janus Sanders</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Soulmate September [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2116602</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>57</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>TSSM Day 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Word Count: 2.6k</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When they first met, they didn’t like each other. Would they go so far as to say they hated each other? Probably not. But it was no secret that Roman and Janus didn’t get along, even if they traveled in a mutual friend group. If the two interacted at all, it was in snide remarks and gripes that had everyone else in the group groaning in annoyance. They just wanted five minutes of peace, that’s all. <em>Just five minutes.<br/>
</em></p><p>Roman was too preppy, Janus said. He was loud and abrasive and presumptuous and arrogant, an annoying theatre boy with too much energy. Other’s feelings came second to his dramatic and overplayed grievances. </p><p>Janus was too self centered, Roman retorted. He was untrustworthy and creepy and a compulsive liar, a loner with a mysterious backstory. Everything about him was kept hidden under a mask of indifference.</p><p>These things were true to some extent, but the group still loved them both too much to reject either one. So they both stayed, bothered by the other’s presence and unwilling to admit that <em>maybe</em> they disliked the other because they were so similar. They were both extravagant and theatrical and burdened with concealed insecurities, points that all of the rest of the group brought up regularly and they both vehemently denied. </p><p>It all changed one morning during school, on a regular Wednesday with average weather after an uneventful English class, when Roman got overly excited at the cast list for the newest show being put up and dropped his art bag. Without a second of hesitation, Janus crouched to help him collect the supplies that had flown across the hallway. That was when Roman’s sleeve slid up, as he was reaching for a paint pen that had rolled up against a locker, and Janus nearly choked.</p><p>00:00</p><p>He blurted out his accusation before he could stop himself.</p><p>“You said you haven’t met your soulmate! And you call <em>me</em> secretive?”</p><p>Roman snarled almost animalistically, covering his completed timer back up and grabbing the now full bag off the ground.</p><p>“If you <em>must know,</em> my timer’s always been like that. I don’t know when it ran out; too young to remember. I don’t even know if it was ever counting down in the first place. Defective.” He flicked the numbers on his wrist.</p><p>“Does anyone else know?”</p><p>Roman narrowed his eyes at the uncharacteristic sympathy in Janus’ voice. “Just Remus.”</p><p>“Why haven’t you told them?”</p><p>“Why all the questions, Fibber on the Roof? Since when do you care about anything I do?”</p><p>Janus was quiet, breathing out a frustrated breath before folding down the bottom of his gloves, the same gloves that Roman taunted daily for making him look like every single Disney villain, the same gloves that made Roman turn to the rest of the group and insist that the guy was hiding something. Turns out he was right.</p><p>“My timer’s out too. I was too young to remember as well.”</p><p>Roman wasn’t able to respond, and Janus was surprisingly relieved. The silent solidarity in the other’s eyes was enough of an olive branch, just another thing they had in common. It was a pain the others didn’t understand, a frustration that couldn’t be fixed. So if from that point on, the bickering lessened and they finally allowed their shared interests to overlap, they surely wouldn’t be the ones to bring it up.  </p><p> </p><p>That’s how they found themselves, almost half a year later, sitting on the swings of a musty playground near Janus’ house, watching the sunset in an unspoken agreement to put off going back until absolutely necessary. It was just another thing they had in common; shitty home life. They didn’t talk about it much, because they knew how much it sucked to discuss, so they let the facts stand at the forefront and the nitty gritty emotions and smaller mental repercussions stay healthily buried. What did it matter? Their parents were awful, ‘nuff said. </p><p>“I just think it’s ridiculous, the amount of time he spent writing it.”</p><p>“He wrote and composed an entire play single handedly, J! Not a single word of it is dialogue, and it all rhymes! <em>You</em> try doing that in seven years.”</p><p>“I’m just saying, doesn’t it come to the point where you have to admit it’s too much work? Did he even know for a fact it would be successful?”</p><p>“He made it work, didn’t he? That’s what faith is for.”</p><p>“I wouldn’t have done it.”</p><p>“That’s what makes Lin Manuel Miranda a god, and you, a worm.” </p><p>Janus gasped and raised a mock hand to his chest, drawing a loud laugh from Roman. While the shorter of the two still wore his gloves daily, the other had slowly gained the confidence to wear short sleeves and display his empty timer, though god help the fool who asked him anything about it. The conversation with the group had gone well, though Jan hadn’t admitted that his situation was the same. They hadn’t known him as long, and they both agreed that it was a sensitive topic. Roman didn’t push him. </p><p>“The sun’s setting.”</p><p>“I had no idea,” Janus smirked, although the implications of the fast approaching darkness made a pit settle in his stomach.</p><p>“We don’t have to leave yet. I just don’t want you to get in trouble.”</p><p>“I don’t really get in trouble that often,” The shorter murmured, kicking his feet in the dust under him, “She’s more just… forgetful. Ignorant. I’m not even sure she fully knows I exist all the time.”</p><p>Roman raised an eyebrow at the first bit of information he’d learned about Janus’ home life, besides knowing it was just ‘bad’. He was debating between quietly prodding him to continue or to just let it sit when Janus made the choice for him.</p><p>“The other day she asked me to go to the liquor store for her and literally didn’t believe me when I said I’m only eighteen. Then again, she’s forgotten my birthday for the last, what, ten years? So I guess she just lost track, got ahead of herself. I don’t know.”</p><p>“When’s your birthday?” It was the only response Roman could think of. </p><p>“August seventh,” He whispered, almost like it was a dark secret he was scared to admit.</p><p>“Wait, actually?”</p><p>Janus turned to him, eyebrows furrowed, “Yeah?”</p><p>“You’re joking. This is a joke, right?”</p><p>“I can probably find my birth certificate if you need proof. Why are you losing your shit?”</p><p>“That’s my birthday too!” </p><p>Janus matched Roman’s face splitting grin with one of his own, his worries slipping away. They’d all been irrational anyways, so good riddance. He quickly settled his face into a more neutral one, the unusual expression hurting his cheeks. A calm air settled between them as their eyes locked, almost in a trance, before Janus snapped out of it and turned his attention to the pink hues of the dimming sky.</p><p>“What are the chances?”</p><p>There was a lot Roman didn’t know about the newest member of the friend group, he realized after dropping Janus off at home and starting the walk back to his. Usually he’d pop in his earbuds, taking the longest back roads and detours to put off arriving even more, but today his head was lost in his thoughts. What else didn’t he know about the blond boy he was so infatuated with?</p><p> </p><p>Two weeks later, Janus edged the front door of his house open, calling out a tentative “Mom?” before pushing it open all the way and pulling Roman in. There was no answer through the empty halls so he yanked the taller boy upstairs, praying that his mom wasn’t home instead of just ignoring his call. It wasn’t until he shut his bedroom door and leaned heavily against it did he remember to breathe, meeting Roman’s eyes shakily.</p><p>“Sorry.”</p><p>“It’s okay. I get it. Parent’s are…”</p><p>“Yeah. It’s better if she doesn’t know you’re here.”</p><p>Roman nodded, finally looking around the room. One wall was completely adorned with old records, some cracked in places or missing pieces entirely. He found himself drawn to it, running a finger down the closest one to him as Janus collapsed on his bed, ruffling the yellow blanket beneath him. He took a moment to pull off his gloves, revealing his soulmark, a secret that only Roman had the honor of seeing. An old jukebox stood proudly in the corner, covered in a fine layer of dust.</p><p>“You definitely have an aesthetic,” Roman hummed, taking notes on the implications of the dust and not approaching the old machine. If Janus didn’t touch it, neither should he. Instead he sat down at the other’s desk, spinning himself lazily in the chair.</p><p>“It was all my dad’s old stuff. He loved music and antiques a lot. The record player was his, too.” </p><p>He followed Janus’ gaze and nodded, overly tempted to take one of the records from the wall and trying to play it, but knowing that would only end badly. The record player was covered in the same thin sheet of dust. </p><p>“Holy Hera, is that a baby picture of you?” His mind, apparently unable to stay on one topic for more than ten seconds, had decided to focus on the framed picture on the bedside table. He crossed the room and sat next to Janus on the bed, leaning closer to the photo but not daring to touch it. He inspected the woman, who could only be Janus’ mother, holding the tiny bundle and smiling weakly at the camera, her eyes tired and hair tied in a messy bun.</p><p>“Yeah,” Janus rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, “That’s the only picture I have with her. She hates cameras, always said she was self conscious and shit. It sucks that the only one I have, I don’t even remember taking.”</p><p>Roman knew he should respond to the surprisingly vulnerable statement, but his eyes had zeroed onto the still slightly slimy, wrinkly baby in the photo. Its little fists were tucked against his face, eyes closed peacefully, a moment of bliss that time forgot. That’s not what caught his attention, though. He squinted, edging just that much closer to the photo.</p><p>“You were born at Jacob Banks Memorial Hospital? I thought you lived in Chicago before you moved out here.” The tiny golden embroidery in the edge of the blanket was just focused enough to make out, as if he didn’t have an identical blanket at home, stashed under his bed in a box of other memories that were too special to throw away. He’d run his finger over the stitching a hundred times, reread the words and committed the blanket to memory, just for that high of simple childhood. And now, here was Janus as a baby, swaddled in the same blanket.</p><p>From the same hospital.</p><p>From the same day.</p><p>“Yeah. My parents were visiting relatives in town when my mom went into early labor. We didn’t end up actually moving here until a couple years ago.” Janus didn’t seem to notice the gears turning in Roman’s head as he reached forward, plucking the picture off the table and bringing it closer to his face. He tapped the glass, just above baby Janus’ arms.</p><p>“Right there, my timer. It’s just a few minutes left. I met my soulmate as a baby and no one cared enough to check who it was.”</p><p>“Janus.”</p><p>“I called the hospital as soon as I was old enough to comprehend, but they said they couldn’t help me. Didn’t have a record of anything to do with soulmates. Some help, huh.”</p><p>“Janus!”</p><p>“What? I’m <em>trying</em> to be melodramatic, Roman.”</p><p>“That’s the same hospital I was born in.”</p><p>“Okay? It’s the only one in town, I’m not overly surprised-” The lightbulb went off, and his head jerked up. “Oh.”</p><p>“Yeah, ‘oh’.”</p><p>They both were quiet for a moment, like the whole house was holding it’s breath, before Janus finally spoke, his voice a choked whisper. “Imagine with me, if you will,” he murmured, taking the picture and inspecting it closely. Not so much for sake of searching for details he wouldn’t have missed the hundreds of hours he spent inspecting the photo, more so just to avoid looking at the person beside him. “Two babies, born in the same place on the same day, put into the same small hospital nursery. They see each other, and <em>click</em>, their timers are out. Except both their parents don’t give a flying rat’s ass-”</p><p>“And so they never realize they met, and live their entire lives shrouded in mystery,” Roman finished quietly, suddenly terrified of the new ice they were walking on. </p><p>“Hypothetically, of course.”</p><p>His head snapped up and the spell was broken, meeting Janus’ pale eyes and jumping to his feet, flapping his hands to dispel his nervous energy. “Okay. Okay! That could… that could make sense! All signs point that way, right?” He began to pace the length of Janus’ room, head tilted towards the ceiling, “And I mean, <em>god</em>, I’ve liked you for <em>how long now</em>? So I’m definitely not upset!”</p><p>“You’ve <em>what</em>?”</p><p>“Alright, so we can call the hospital, or go there, or something! I’m sure they can tell us how many babies were born that day, that doesn’t seem like confidential information, right? And if it was just us three, you, me, and Remus, then that’ll settle it!”</p><p>“Wait, no, Roman, <em>stop</em>!”</p><p>Janus launched himself at Roman before he could click the call button on the Google search of the hospital, already dedicated to his plan. He ripped the phone from his grasp and tossed it onto the bed after pressing the power button, grabbing Roman’s hands tightly.</p><p>“Jan, what the hell? That’s the only way we’re going to know for sure if we’re-”</p><p>“But what if we’re not?!”</p><p>The two settled into silence after the outburst, searching each other’s faces intently. They both shared scared expressions, eyes wide with excitement and nervousness, the possibility of years worth of questions finally being answered. The promise that their two soulmarks <em>weren’t</em> dysfunctional, <em>weren’t</em> broken, and fate that had led them together one way or another. </p><p>But what if they weren’t?</p><p>“What if it’s a coincidence? What if you find out that your mom checked out before mine even got there, or our paths never could have crossed, or there were twenty babies born that day and there’s no sure way to know that we are each other’s soulmates? What if you find out that your soulmark said two years and mine ran out with someone else completely?”</p><p>“You’re starting to sound like Virgil,” Roman said quietly, almost fondly, a gentle smile tugging at his lips.</p><p>“Roman, if you’re my soulmate, I’d be elated,” Janus’ hushed tone matched his, “But I don’t know what I’ll do if I build my hope and then find out it’s not true.” They were quiet again, and Janus was suddenly hyper aware that he was still holding Roman’s hands, a furious blush rising to his cheeks. He fought the urge to look away, look anywhere other than Roman’s bright eyes, because this was the closest they’d ever been and he was scared one flinch might break the charm they were in. </p><p>“We don’t have to check,” the taller whispered, “If <em>you</em> are, I’m content just… believing it.”</p><p>“You always were a cheesy romantic.” The phrase was meant to be cutting, but the uncontainable grin across his face greatly lessened its impact.</p><p>“I’m a Disney lover, what can I say?”</p><p>Janus snorted, dropping his head on to Roman’s shoulder, his heart nearly stopping altogether when the taller boy wrapped his arms around him and pulled them a step closer together. “So we’re agreeing on this? That we’re soulmates?” His voice was muffled against Roman’s shirt.</p><p>“As far as I’m concerned, yes. Fuck the system, right?”</p><p>“Overthrow the government. Commit arson in the name of anarchy. Society is a prison.”</p><p>“Dramatic, and that’s coming from me,” Roman drawled, rocking them back and forth slowly, dancing to unheard music, “Hey, Janus?”</p><p>“Yes?”</p><p>“Can I kiss you?”</p><p>“I thought you’d never ask.” </p>
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